20 Sentences: Edward Elric
by NinthFeather
Summary: The title sort of sums it up, huh? My attempt at a 20 sentences fic. Set in manga/Brotherhood, with mentions of EdWin. Warnings: spoilers for the whole series, rated for general angst.


_A/N: Okay, so I decided to try doing one of these 20-sentences things, as a challenge to myself. I didn't know where you'd find prompts for them, so I decided to try and find a list of random words that I thought would work. When that didn't happen, I went with Plan B and picked out the first 20 one-word song titles I could think of. If you read my other FMA fics, (there are only two so far, one one-shot and one crossover, but still…), these are some of the songs I listen to when I write. I'm putting another A/N at the end with a list of all the song's actual titles (some of the titles are Japanese ones, so I used the English translation of their titles as my prompt) and either their artists or what anime they're from—I listen to mostly Japanese music and country, and the country stuff rarely has one-word titles. Anyhow, these are all about Ed, mostly from his point of view, though some aren't, and mostly angsty, although some aren't. There are spoilers for the entire series here, so be forewarned. Enjoy!_

**20 Sentences: Edward Elric**

**Again**

He looks at the creature before him, no longer human or dog, but a grotesque mixture of the two, and wonders why someone else always ends up paying for his failures.

**Careful**

The flecks of blood cover every inch of Alphonse's armor, especially the inside, so Ed climbs in and gently dabs at his brother's blood-seal, trying to remove the snake-woman's blood without also cleaning off his own.

**Colors**

"Red is my favorite color," is what he always says, but the truth is that it's easier for blood stains to blend into fabric of the same color.

**Hero**

When people thank him for helping them, he wonders why he can do things for complete strangers, but can't help his own brother.

**Hologram **

Al, thin and pale, the edges of his blonde hair glowing golden in the early morning sunlight, seems to him to be made of light, and Ed resists the temptation to touch him, just to make sure that he's real.

**Ignorance**

He looks back on his childhood self with a mixture of disdain and envy, because the golden-eyed toddler who transmuted toy horses for his mother knew nothing of the world.

**Invoke**

"There's no god I'd really want to pray to," he tells Scar, and the admission is accompanied by an unexpected feeling of emptiness.

**Lie**

"I'm fine," he tells Alphonse for the millionth time, and both of them know it isn't true, and hasn't been since the day Al started asking.

**Light **

The afternoon sun filters through the windows of the Rockbell house, painting broad stripes of gold across Winry as she works on his arm, and he thinks, rather absently, that he's never seen anything so beautiful.

**Maze**

On their first day in East City, Al suggests that they ask someone for directions to military headquarters, but Ed ignores him, and regrets it later when his flesh foot aches from hours of aimless wandering.

**Moment**

He's learned to treasure the little things—the rush of excitement when some aspect of his research actually seems like it might be what he's looking for, the satisfaction of landing a hit on Al when they spar, the warm feeling in his chest when he sits down to dinner at the Rockbells'—because he's come to the realization that joy is harder to find than the Stone.

**Period**

Teacher asks him, "You saw _that thing_, didn't you?" and he realizes that the brief interlude that he'd hoped for in this visit is over.

**Pieces**

He gathers up the scattered bits of his brother's armor after the fight with Scar, and tries not to think about what would have happened if Al had gotten his body back before the fight.

**Pride**

The ridiculous part of their attempt at human transmutation, the part that makes him laugh bitterly and shake his head, was that he really thought they, two children, could succeed where so many other alchemists had failed.

**Rain**

His damp hair is nearly brown instead of its normal golden hue, and his coat is heavy and soaked, but there's something about standing in the downpour like this that makes him think it's okay to cry if he feels like it, so he waits a while before going inside.

**Synchronicity**

When he suggests it, Al just looks at him, and Ed knows he means "No," so he returns with a look that says "Just try to stop me," and the two of them argue soundlessly for a while before he finally gives up.

**Trap**

As the Fuhrer's threats about what might happen should he leave the military echo in his mind, the weight of the watch in his pocket is suddenly uncomfortable, and the feeling of the chain bouncing against his hip becomes a nuisance.

**Uninstall**

Sometimes, late at night, when he hasn't slept for a while and his missions have been going badly, he thinks it might be easier if he just passed away in his sleep.

**Vestige**

When he passes the tree that grows next to the empty space that was their house, its branches still scarred by char marks, he feels an odd sort of kinship with it.

**World**

Running toward Father, steel arm outstretched and reaching for the blindingly bright nuclear reaction floating above the homunculus's palm, he remembers the days when he was only worried about himself and Al, and wonders when the rest of the planet became his to protect.

_A/N: Okay, so here's the list of songs; I know who performed most of them but not all of them:_

_Again by YUI (FMA:B opening), Careful by Paramore, Colors by FLOW (Code Geass opening), Hero by Superchick, Hologram by Nico Touches the Walls (FMA:B opening), Ignorance by Paramore, Invoke by T. M. Revolution (Gundam Seed opening), Uso (Lie) by SID (FMA:B ending), Hikari (Light) by ? (Nabari no Ou ending), Maze by ? (Pandora Hearts ending), Moment by ? (Gundam Seed opening), Period by Chemistry (FMA:B opening), Pieces by R.O.N. (SoltyRei/Origin insert song), Pride by High and Mighty Color (Gundam Seed Destiny opening), Rain by ? (FMA:B opening), Synchronicity by Yui Makino (Tsubasa: Tokyo Revelations OVA opening), Wana (Trap) by The Back Horn (Gundam 00 ending), Uninstall by ? (Bokurano opening), Vestige by T.M. Revolution (Gundam Seed insert song), The World by ? (Death Note opening)._

_These are all really good songs, by the way, if you haven't heard them yet. Oh, and if anyone else wants to try to use these prompts for a 20-sentences thing, have at it, and good luck._


End file.
